Russia Surpasses Germany to Become Europe's Top Beer Producer for the First Time in 12 Years

Russia Boosts Domestic Beer Production
Russian Beer Output Up 9% in One Year, While Germany Drops 1%

Russia has overtaken Germany to become the largest beer producer in Europe. This development is attributed to Russia significantly increasing its domestic beer production after the onset of the war in Ukraine, as trade with Western countries declined.

The German business daily Handelsblatt reported on the 23rd (local time), citing a report from BarthHaas, a hop trading company, that Russia produced 9.1 billion liters of beer last year, surpassing Germany, which produced 8.4 billion liters. Russia's beer production increased by 9% in one year, while Germany's decreased by 1%.

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Russia is now the world's fifth-largest beer producer, following China (34 billion liters), the United States (18 billion liters), Brazil (14.7 billion liters), and Mexico (14.5 billion liters), making it the top producer in Europe. This is the first time in 12 years that Germany has lost its number one position in Europe. Just five years ago, Germany produced 1.4 billion liters more beer than Russia, but the gap has narrowed each year.

Thomas Reisser, CEO of BarthHaas, stated that Russia's beer imports have decreased while domestic production has increased. Russia, known as one of the countries with the highest alcohol consumption in the world, had previously supplemented its domestic supply with imported beer from Germany, the Czech Republic, and other countries. However, since the outbreak of the war, both Russia and Western countries have become increasingly reluctant to import and export beer to each other.

Beer is not included in the European Union's sanctions list against Russia. However, European beer companies continue to face criticism for selling alcoholic beverages to Russia, which initiated the war. The Polish media outlet Rzeczpospolita criticized the increasing exports of Czech beer to Russia during the war, stating that "Czech breweries have no ethical qualms."

According to RIA Novosti, in the first quarter of this year, China's beer exports to Russia nearly doubled compared to the previous year, surpassing Germany and the Czech Republic for the first time ever. Oksana Lut, Russia's Minister of Agriculture, recently announced plans to increase domestic hop production to meet 50% of domestic demand by 2030. This is seen as part of Russia's efforts to increase self-sufficiency in beer production.